3
TERMINOLOGY
The following terms are used throughout the manual, and are standard
terminology among detectorists.
ELIMINATION
Reference to a metal being "eliminated" means that the detector will
not emit a tone, nor light up an indicator, when a specified object
passes through the coil’s detection field.
DISCRIMINATION
When the detector emits different tones for different types of metals,
and when the detector "eliminates" certain metals, we refer to this
as the detector "discriminating" among different types of metals.
Discrimination is an important feature of professional metal
detectors. Discrimination allows the user to ignore trash and
otherwise undesirable objects.
RELIC
A relic is an object of interest by reason of its age or its association
with the past. Many relics are made of iron, but can also be made
of bronze or precious metals.
IRON
Iron is a common, low-grade metal that is an undesirable target in
certain metal detecting applications. Examples of undesirable iron
objects are old cans, pipes, bolts, and nails.
Sometimes, the desired target is made of iron. Property markers,
for instance, contain iron. Valuable relics can also be composed of
iron; cannon balls, old armaments, and parts of old structures and
vehicles can also be composed of iron.
FERROUS
Metals which are made of, or contain, iron.
PINPOINTING
Pinpointing is the process of finding the exact location of a buried
object. Long-buried metals can appear exactly like the surrounding
soil, and can therefore be very hard to isolate from the soil.
PULL-TABS
Discarded pull-tabs from beverage containers are the most bothersome
trash items for treasure hunters. They come in many different shapes
and sizes. Pull-tabs can be discriminated, but some other valuable
objects can have a magnetic signature similar to pull-tabs, and will also
be eliminated when discriminating out pull-tabs.
GROUND BALANCE
Ground Balancing is the ability of the detector to ignore, or "see
through," the earth’s naturally occurring minerals, and only sound
a tone when a metal object is detected.
